Pixel 9a

[...] I have a Pixel 9a and it's been quite good with really solid battery life. It's barely 6 months old and I got it new straight from Google. A few days ago I noticed the battery started to drain much faster than usual. [...] In 10 hours today I sent 3 text messages with Whatsapp and lost 60% of my battery in that time frame. [...] I find it weirdly coincidental that the battery life went from amazing to worse than a 5 year old device I had prior to this just as they are releasing new phones. I've powered it down and given it a full discharge / charge too. It's still draining at an alarming rate.

I've been using a Pixel 9a for the last year, that replaced my 3 year+ S21. The wife has done something similar with the iPhone range switching to the e model.

[...] But after the battery thing update, it's a bit frustrating so we looked for another phone... and 9a came up now on black friday (in Sweden) and it was the same price as we bought the 6A (for us it was about 375 USD) so we bought 2... Every update (except for the later battery one) has been awesome for Pixel 6a, so it's a bit sad that it was a bit wobbly on the updates for 9a. What I really like (even if it's slow) is the wireless charging... [...] and with battery protection charging on it still almost have virgin USB port (these usually fail on me after 2 years as you plug in and out and sometimes drag the cable and USB gets so worn)... [...] 1080p screen, Dolby Atmos (best sound from any tablet I ever heard, and I have had many Dolby Atmos tablets after that) and wireless charging and so on and on... [...]

[...] My main ones are Sony MDR-V6s which I've had for 10 years. They are the best headphones I've ever owned and they sound just as good today as they did a decade ago. [...] The other are crappy $8 earbuds / mic combo that are maybe 7 years old and work just fine. I have wireless earbuds that I occasionally use since the Pixel 9a has no 3.5mm jack. [...] I have to babysit them to make sure they are charged. [...]

I got a pixel 9a for 300 on black Friday a year ago, and other than the garbage Google forces on it, no other phone does a whole lot more, whatever the price. I have Google a, chrome and maps disabled, it works fine

After experimenting with grapheneos on a Google Pixel 9a for 5 months I've come to the sad conclusion that it's not going to replace my iPhone as a daily driver. I've become too addicted to face id, digital wallets, and even iMessage.

This is one of the advantages apple currently has: Staying on the bleeding edge of or buying an iphone is cheaper than you would think, because iphones in general retain their value longer than the average android I have found that you can also use the less long value retention to your advantage by not buying an Android phone on release day. [...] here in Western Europe, including VAT: Pixel 9a 549 - 349, Pixel 10 899 - 549, Pixel 10 Pro 1099 - 769. [...] a Pixel at the discounted price, the loss is not so much after selling after 1-2 years. [...]

Interesting take, I have never replaced the battery in a cellphone of mine as an owner of one for over twenty years.

Pixel 9a, Firefox. Never even imagined I would have a problem. HN is my "is the internet working?" check.

As someone that swapped from fairphone 5 to a pixel9a with graphene. [...] Fairphone is a cool concept, but its a expensive phone, early on i had problem with the speakers and mic. Security updates are extremely slow, support is extremely slow. [...] Look at pixel software support, its really good, and eu made batteries replacement mandatory.

[...] The Pixel 9a is currently 350 Euro in my country, it has the same CPU/GPU (modem differs) that the expensive 9 Pro/Pro XL/Pro Fold had. [...] at that price I cannot imagine it being more than break-even. Also, even Pixel 9a has all the security functions of the flagship that many other Android phones do not have or are just getting, such as the Memory Tagging Extension (MTE), the Titan M2 security processor (no need to rely on TrustZone for secrets), etc.

[...] The Play store is fucking malware, Google services are malware, and the family member now uses a Pixel 9a with GrapheneOS which makes normie phone usage riskless and clean again. [...]

[...] I'm daily driving a Pixel 9a with GrapheneOS and I strongly disagree, at least from an ordinary usage perspective. [...]

[...] People do have different thread models, though I think up-to-date software should be the baseline for everyone and where pretty much every phone outside iPhone, Google Pixel, and a subset of Samsung phones fail. [...] Pixel covers a pretty wide price range to, e.g. the Pixel 9a was 349 Euro here recently, all the way up to the Pixel fold.

This UI is great but do you get this horrible thing where sometimes the browser is shows a white screen and you have to force stop the app? Happens all the time on the latest version for my Pixel 9a. [...] It's really horrible and I can't pin down any rhythm or reason other than loosely seeming to happen more often when I'm in battery saver mode.

[...] Biometric works great on the Pixel 9A, at least, and it was fine on the 8 Pro when I had it. [...]

I've been using /e/OS for years. Since 2025 I'm on Pixel 9A and GOS. [...] Updates are so frequent. [...]

[...] I'll stick to my Pixel 9a running Graphene for the forseeable future.

On my Pixel 9a (also on GrapheneOS) the biggest limitation is it can't be set to higher than 1080p, and the upscaling algorithm with my 4K display (not sure where in the chain that happens, monitor or phone) was quite terrible to the point of text legibility being a concern. The usage experience otherwise is quite good, it's perhaps my preferred way to sync data to and from my phone, I have it all stored on a NAS so I connect to my Type-C display (which has keyboard, mouse, and ethernet connected to its switch), fire up a terminal, type in my rsync commands, and my pictures & music are synced instantly at LAN speeds.

It depends on what you're looking for. I have a Pixel 9a with Graphene on it and wanted to customize my icons which I don't think the stock launcher allows. Went with Lawnchair and set it up mostly the same as the stock Pixel launcher otherwise.

[...] The Pixel 9a would be used for everything I don't need a data plan/SIM card (browsing etc). [...] I really don't want to get random pings while I'm doing "real" stuff on my phone.

[...] 2) The second is a Pixel 9a with Graphene OS for daily use, routing and internet access. This is expensive, but I found it to be the only viable solution to this problem.

I'm using an OLED X1 Carbon right now in the UK. I use it all the time in low light. [...] I then used my phone to record the screen and yes - I can confirm that there is an effect that my pixel 9a's camera picks up, barely noticeable at 240Hz, and definitely noticeable at 480Hz. [...]

Fun thing (?), I was excited on my last trip to Japan so I could test QZSS with my Pixel 9a, that supports it, and my GPS experience in urban canyons, specially in Shibuya, was terribly bad. Even when in GPS Test or GPS Lock tools it was showing better than 3 meter horizontal accuracy, and a multitude of locked satellites, including some QZSS, the location would usually be 30 to 50 meters away. The first days I though I had lost all my capacity to navigate Tokyo, then I noticed the GPS was gas-lightning me. I tried removing the phone case, changing GPS settings... [...]

[...] I think pixels normally show what's playing on the lock screen, offline. I think this might be the same thing, triggered manually. [...] I've had no issues there. [...] I've used it on a pixel 6, which died not too long ago, and now a pixel 9a.

[...] I can leave my smartphone in a faraday bag and just pull it out when I need it, or just wait to be in wifi. (I am homeless living in a minivan so this makes it much harder for me.) I just do not know how much this will effect GrapheneOS or I would get a Pixel 9a. [...]

It supports eSIM. Two months ago, I bought a Pixel 9a, immediately put GrapheneOS on it, and registered an eSIM.

I did this. I got an open box Pixel 9A at Best Buy for $450 about a month ago. I immediately installed GrapheneOS on it.

Same, I switched from iPhone 17 Pro to the Pixel 9a for grapheneOS and i love the form factor but miss the magsafe. Mainly for charging, I got a case with the mag ring for my wallet/grip thing.

[...] I bought a Pixel 9a and couldn't be happier. The camera in particular is exceptional but everything is improved.

The Pixel 9a offering both facial recognition and a fingerprint reader is surprisingly handy. It's surprising to me how often I seem to be trying to unlock my phone while looking at something else. (And no, I don't mean when I'm driving.)

Got to work to find a Pixel 9a waiting for me to replace the 8a I'd been using. Data seems to have transferred over, apps are responding. This could work out.

a lot of places recommend the Pixel 9a or 10a as the best mid-range Android phone, but that's like $450-500 and frankly I want less Google in my phone, not more. and every Pixel I've ever used seemed intent on absolutely murdering its battery, though some were more relentless about it than others.

I went to a best buy last year to get a case for my phone (pixel 9a) and they apparently no longer carries cases for them now that the pixel 10 series was out

Yeah, I noticed my Pixel 9a works fine plugged in to my laptop dock. Puts it on the monitor and everything!

I tend to forget my phone's camera can also do a decent job. Pixel 9a Photography EastCoastKin Travel TravelPhotography Thailand Sea Beach

I love pixel 9a back design. Wish they had pro models with a design like this, not protruding something like now

Upgraded my phone from the S10 to the Pixel 9a, and the speakers are worse 😔 They just don't make phones like they used to

I bought a pixel 9a at an enormous discount while switching carrier. [...] Notably, no other phones had such low prices, even with discounts. At that price point, it's most likely the best value phone I've ever bought. [...]

I've been using Pixel 9A with a custom ROM for a few weeks now. And it has offered pretty much all I need from a phone; good camera for point-and-shoot, and battery life. [...] For screen protection, I do have a flip case.

My new Pixel 9a is all set up! [...] It's not like...super high end, but it's faster, the camera's way better, and it's PINK. I'm annoyed though because I bought a case ahead of time, sat it somewhere to wait for the phone, and now it's VANISHED.

The Pixel 5 was an absolutely brilliant phone; everything about it was right: the texture, the size, and the battery was great too. [...] I've since moved onto a Pixel 9a and it just isn't as good, IMO. The screen seems so much... [...] I used to drop the 5 quite a bit onto hard concrete floors, and it never sustained the damage that this one has (without as much abuse): the screen is cracked along the side. [...]

I have had a mixed experience. Bought my Mom a Pixel 9a. [...] Connectivity issues (WiFi connected, but no internet), screen losing colors (white would turn gray), ghosting issues (scrolled/hidden content would stay on screen for a period of time).

[...] My only concern is that there is a buzzing noise if the app is in the foreground and some audio is playing in the background. This is on pixel 9a

[...] I had one that would change my screen from grayscale to color when I opened the photos app. [...] I have a pixel 9a with Graphene right now and I'm very happy with it. Great hardware, great price, great software. [...] RCS doesn't work on Graphene, and SMS is basically the worst thing ever, so I use Signal as much as I can. [...]

Best-in-class camera I own a Pixel 9a. It's the first phone I used that made me question how many of the pixels going out of the camera app are actually coming the sensor and how many from some AI model. [...]

[...] Partially my fault since I'm using non-default ROMs (LineageOS on my Fairphone 4, which I then replaced with GrapheneOS on my Pixel 9a), but also mostly Google's fault for taking as janky of an approach as possible when it comes to its Messages app (which seems to be the only actively-maintained Android SMS app with RCS support, because of course it is). [...]

Ok, fair enough, if we are looking at software side of "repairs" (updates). However I'm talking about hardware side of things - with Fairphone I can remove and replace the battery by myself (or even carry a spare if I choose to), while e.g. in the newest Pixel, 9a, the battery is glued in place. [...] I guess what I'm saying is that having control over my phone (as opposed to BigTech or apps having the control) is for me a much higher priority goal than just security by itself. [...]

When I replaced my Pixel 6 with a Pixel 9a a couple months ago, the transfer process went fine. Everything transferred automatically. The only complaint I had is that it waited until 19 minutes had passed of a 20 minute estimate before telling me I could connect the phones with a USB cable and go faster than the wireless transfer.

You post this after my partner, my best friend, and I all upgraded our 4+ year old phones to the 9a because we all got great trade in offers where we all only paid the tax on the phone and now own it outright. As much as we all are enjoying our new phones, I do agree with the criticism about things like the speaker grill and battery removal issue.